The Wesley Chapel Wildcats will head out to challenge the South Sumter Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (Wesley Chapel 2.8, South Sumter 4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Wesley Chapel is probably headed into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder considering Berkeley Prep just ended the team's four-game winning streak on Friday. They fell just short of the Buccaneers by a score of 2-1. Having soared to a lofty ten runs in the game before, the Wildcats couldn't push the score so high this time.
Aiden Nguyen was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out 11 batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits (and not a single walk).
At the plate, Wesley Chapel saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Mills Carrillo, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base. Nick Walters also deserves some recognition as he brought in his first RBI of the season.
Meanwhile, South Sumter came tearing into Tuesday's game with five straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 5.8 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They were the clear victor by a 13-6 margin over the Yellow Jackets. The Raiders might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven contests by six runs or more this season.
Grant Polk looked comfortable as he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Malakhi Boone was incredible, scoring four runs and stealing Two bases. while going 3-for-4. Those four runs gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of James Boone, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
South Sumter kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 17 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in four consecutive matches.
South Sumter pushed their record up to 11-2 with the win, which was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.8 runs on average over those games. As for Wesley Chapel, their loss dropped their record down to 8-5.
Everything went Wesley Chapel's way against South Sumter in their previous meeting back in April of 2021, as Wesley Chapel made off with an 11-4 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Wesley Chapel since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
